Thursday, September 22, 2011

Has the WWE painted themselves in a corner?


In the 1980’s, Hulk Hogan held the WWE World Heavyweight Title for 4 consecutive years plus one full year.  In 1991, he held it for more than 8 months.   In 1993, he held it for more than 3 months.  The total number of days he held the title before Vince McMahon decided to push the younger talent and before Hulk Hogan jumped to WCW was 2157 days.  When holding the title for those many days meant that anybody he was up against him was doomed to lose.  Why has he held such long title runs?  Because it was good business.  For those who can recollect the 1980s Hulk Hogan era, they will remember that there were hundreds and hundreds of marketing schemes to maximize on his popularity.  As long as Hulk Hogan was on a lunch box, pencil case, t-shirt, etc., the WWF (now WWE) was making money outside of the wrestling events.  Hulk Hogan did talk shows, interviews, and guest appearances in promoting the WWF.  Amongst the kids, he was the biggest living hero around.  Among the adults, they tolerated him because of his positive messages of “eat your vegetables, take vitamins and say your prayers”.  So, in keeping Hulk Hogan as the WWE champion made a lot of business sense.

In the early 1990s, when Hogan and his contemporaries where getting older and deemed less relevant to the next generation of wrestling fans, fresher and younger talents became the center of the WWE.  Unlike the 1980s where the company was primarily centered on Hulk Hogan, the WWE developed many superstars whose popularity was big enough to hold the title and carry on the WWE marketing scheme.   Superstars like Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Steve Austin, and the Rock, were thrusted into the spotlight and because each could hold their own in the ring and on the mic, it was easy for the WWE Heavyweight Title to change hands frequently.  During this time, no one held the title close to a year (with the exception of Diesel who held it for 358 days) before having to lose it to someone else.  One big factor why no one title reign was longer than a year is because the WWE shifted the shows format from a pursuit for the championship to non-title storylines with on-going drama.

In the early 2000s, this tactic of creating a new generation of Superstars that can hold the WWE Heavyweight Title continued on with the cycle being around 5-7 years cycle.  As Bret left in the mid-90s for WCW, as Shawn and Austin’s injuries kept them out of the ring for longer periods of time throughout the late-90s to early 2000s, and as the Rock decided to pursue an acting career in the early 2000s, the title bounced around from Triple H, Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, the Big Show, and Brock Lesnar.  The difference now is that they really focused on story lines than fighting for the title.  The title played more and more as a second fiddle to the non-title storylines.  The problem with focusing on a story line is that there is only a few people who can be featured.  Another effect is that more time is spent on promos and other non-in-ring action.  When there is less in-ring action, then there is at least 2 to 4 people (single and tag-team matches) who is not regularly getting on TV.  With less people on TV, then less people are getting over in front of the crowd.  Because of this, those who are in main event storylines have to work double time in order to fill out a show.

By the mid-2000s, many of the main event workers were either injured or burnt out from all the travel and extra work that was expected of them.  People like Jeff Hard resorted to drugs.  Chris Benoit basically went insane.  Edge was constantly working in pain, which led to his mandatory in-ring retirement.  Brock left to pursue MMA.  Batista left for other ventures.  Jericho left so as to have a break, in which he did return, but left the company again.  These are a few examples of main event Superstars who are no longer with the company, but could have picked up the slack and keep the WWE in it’s success until now.  Now with less of them there, that responsibility has fallen on the few.

So now in 2011, who does the WWE rely to hold the title and carry the company on his back?  John Cena.  John Cena is in the position he is in with always winning the title and being in the center of Main Event storylines because for the past 3 years, they stopped creating future Main Eventers.  Because of the major focus of John Cena, they stopped allotting time in creating good undercard matches.  Not creating good undercard matches means less camera and promo time, which means less Superstars have the chance to get over with the crowd.  So, if anything were to ever happen to John Cena that will be huge blow to their revenues.  In short, the WWE has seemed to paint themselves into a corner.

Though I will admit that they have given opportunities to a few who have dropped the ball like Jack Swagger and Ted Dibiase, they still have other people with whom they can try to get over with the audience.  At this point, CM Punk, the Miz, and R-Truth are being positioned for the main spotlight.  Sheamus and Cody Rhodes are also on their way up.  I could add Mark Henry (who is for the moment the World Heavyweight Champion) and Christian, but they are more on the down slope of their careers because of their longevity.  Though these Superstars are currently working the Main Event storylines, they still haven’t reached the “John Cena” level, and this is due to lack of a push to make them main event stars.

It is a fact that there is only one Hulk Hogan, one Randy Savage, one Bret Hart, one Shawn Michaels, one Stone Cold Steve Austin, one Rock, one Edge, etc.  They had the character, in-ring psychology and mic skills that brought them to the level they were at, but it was only through an investment of time, which brought them higher and higher.  This investment is need now for the current talents.  They to test their limitations by investing time for them to pursue the lower titles like the Intercontinental and US Championship or pair some up to battle for the Tag Team titles.  Except for Hulk Hogan, the rest of those mentioned above followed that path.  They held those title as if that was the most important title in the company.  The result of that investment of time is that when it was time for them to step-up, they did step up and rose higher than even they themselves ever expected. 

In order for power to change, there is a transition.  So far, the WWE transition to promote future main eventers has been slow.  The main title always falls on Cena.  The minor titles have rarely been showcased.  Even when someone like Alberto Del Rio is introduced to the main storyline, they find a way for Cena to retain the title or to regain it if it’s lost.  With no Big Show, Kane, Edge, and Rey Mysterio (who are the biggest draws after John Cena, Randy Orton, and CM Punk), they need to speed up this transition period.  They need to start building the future main eventers, because there is only so much that they can do with Cena and Orton before the crowd starts turning away (with some already have turned away by not tuning in or just staying dedicated to Impact Wrestling or ROH).

I have no doubt the WWE will revive our attention to their product.  Like everything in life, there is their ups-and-downs, but there has to be that time when you shift into second gear when you’re climbing that mountain.  Recently, there has been some mix-up for the better with Raw and Smackdown, which has caught my attention, but we will have to wait and see as to where they go from there.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Is Sheamus The Next Cena?


It’s undeniable that John Cena is the “face of the WWE”.  Being the WWE Champion, his responsibilities extend beyond the ring.  He does the talk show circuit.  He represents the WWE in special events.  He does guest appearances on various TV shows.  As it is right now, no one on the WWE roster does as much marketing outside the ring for the WWE than John Cena.  That is why the championship belt continues to fall on his lap.  It’s good business that he is the “face of the WWE”.

Now, take a look at the WWE roster and we will see that the only active faces who are main event worthy (aside from Cena and Orton) is CM Punk and Sheamus.  If anything were to happen to Cena or Orton (like an extended injury), CM Punk deserves to be the WWE Heavyweight or the World Heavyweight Champion.  He’s been with the company since 2006.  He’s won numerous titles both as a heel and face.  It was only when he threatened to not return after his contract was about to expire that they started to really pay attention to what he can bring to the company.  As a result, he’s in the top main non-title storyline every week.  But to be the face of the WWE is more than just holding the WWE Heavyweight or the World Heavyweight Title.  There’s a certain look and presence that the face of the WWE must have to represent the company beyond the squared circle.  Though I do like CM Punk and I think he has a great personality in doing interviews outside the WWE, he doesn’t have the look that Vince McMahon would want as a representative to do the talk show circuit and guest appearances.  CM Punk prides himself in being the “anti-establishment” type of guy, and no one else since Austin has been able to pull that character to much applause.  I wouldn’t change a thing about CM Punk, but there’s a sense of a “professional” look that he will never have and that will hinder him in being that “face of the WWE”.

Randy Orton is great in the ring.  He has developed one of the best in-ring psychology in the WWE, but he has a very, very dry character when on the mic or in front of a camera.  He reminds me a lot of Bret Hart.  Bret Hart had great technical skills and good in-ring psychology, but the problem with Bret was that it took him a long time to look comfortable on the mic.  But people loved his wrestling matches so much that they didn’t care about how mediocre his mic skills were.  It was only toward the end of his stint with the WWE when he looked comfortable handling the mic.  That is how I view Randy Orton.  He is mediocre at cutting promos.  So, for him to do the talk show circuit would not be exciting because I don’t think he’s an exciting character outside the ring.  This is why he won’t be the “face of the WWE”.

One person I didn’t mention earlier but is worth mentioning is the Miz.  If you ever seen Miz do a talk show, or be a special guest on a morning show, or even hear him be interviewed on radio show, he is very entertaining on the mic.  The Miz will give the viewers 90%-Michael Mizanin and 10%-Miz.  Michael Mizanin is a funny, smart-ass character that is ready to crack a joke at any time, while the Miz is a heel that believes he is AWESOME.  He will be funny and entertaining and pull glimpses of being a heel, which makes everyone laugh.  He can possibly be a future “face of the WWE” but he has yet to be commanding character in the ring for him to hold the title for a extended period of time. 

This all brings me to Sheamus.  Only until a couple months ago did Sheamus turn from a heel to a face.  As a result of his turn, he has been getting more cheers as a face than boos as a heel.  Every time he defeats a heel, the audience is getting louder and louder, which means they are slowly accepting him as a face.  For a person who is 6’6”, he moves very well inside the ring.  He has a huge physique and is powerful in the ring.  He has a smirk-like smile that he knows he bigger and stronger than his opponent that leads to say, “I’m gonna hurt you now, fella!”.  In his promos, he sounds like a big that’s trying to be friendly, but still hold the demeanor that you shouldn’t piss him off.  Though he is as pale as mayonnaise, he doesn’t have any tattoos, so this subliminally sends a message to kids that you don’t need a tattoo to be tough.  With his Irish accent, hearing him call people “fella” is actually pretty entertaining.  When you hear him say it, it makes you want to imitate him, which kind of leads toward a form of a catch phrase.  Now how is he outside of the ring?  I’ve only seen him twice doing an interview.  He dresses well in non-ring attire.  He’s my not be quite exciting on the mic, but you can tell that he’s comfortable chatting with anyone.  With more practice, he can fluid while talking on a podium or with an interviewer.

As a recap, unlike CM Punk, he doesn’t have any tattoos or piercing.  Unlike Randy Orton, he has a more appealing character.  Unlike the Miz, he has a dominating presence in the ring.  As it is right now, aside from John Cena, there is no face-wrestler on the WWE roster that is in the same position as Sheamus.  If Sheamus continues on the path that he is in now, within a years time, he could be in the same spotlight as John Cena.  This why I believe that Sheamus can be the next John Cena.  He can be the next “face of the WWE”.

Who Needs Who?


Vickie Guerrero is currently the only the person in the WWE who plays the role of a manager.  The talent she manages is Dolph Ziggler.  Now, why does the WWE still keep Vickie and Dolph together?  It seems like Vickie needs Dolph more than Dolph needs Vickie.

If we examine the role of a manager in professional wrestling, we can say that they have the following responsibility:
  1. Guide the wrestler in his matches
  2. Be the distraction/outside help to gain the win
  3. Be the mouthpiece on behalf of the wrestler
  4. OVERALL, to get the wrestler over
Based on the general purposes, Vickie does none of them.  In matches, she’s more of a cheerleader than anything.  Dolph has great skill in the ring.  His ring psychology is good with pulling out a win when a win isn’t expected.  Vickie has contributed nothing as far as helping Dolph win matches.

When it comes to being a distraction or giving outside help for Dolph, as far as the storyline goes, she distracts Dolph more than his opponent.  She causes more drama for Dolph than need be.  This part of her work may help the storyline, but if you’re trying to build up talent, then this hinders Dolph from reaching a higher level.

Being the mouthpiece for a wrestler is usually done when the wrestler either can’t talk, don’t speak English, or doesn’t have an promo skills.  She does gain a lot of heel heat with her “Excuse Me!  EXCUSE ME!” but does that translate as heel heat for Dolph?  No, it doesn’t.  It gains heat for herself, and Dolph is only gaining heat by association.  Now, if Dolph didn’t speak English or can’t cut a promo, then this makes perfect sense, but he does speak English and has cut good heel promos in the past.

Now, though Vickie being very popular as a heel may have helped Dolph when they started, Dolph is already over as a heel.  He has the arrogance.  He cheats if he needs to cheat for the win.  He takes advantage of the moment when it arises.  He does the things that heels do and does it very well.

So why are they still teamed up?  Because Vickie needs Dolph more than Dolph needs Vickie.  If Vickie didn’t have Dolph, then there’s no point for her to be on TV.  Vickie is a good heel manager but she needs to be with someone who needs a heel manager.  It’s a great idea that Jack Swagger now has  Vickie as his manager, but it took forever for that to happen.  Swagger would gain a lot if he had Vickie because he really can’t draw heat when he’s on the mic.  I'm hoping that this leads to Dolph to breaking away from Vickie.

I’m a Dolph Ziggler fan.  He actually has great verbal skills, which is something that is hard to come by with the current up-and-coming talent.  He has the look of arrogance that makes you want to boo.  I believe if he just gets rid of Vickie, his character will grow much more, and become one of the greater heels on the roster today.  I hope that the WWE can give him the shot to be on his own.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Congratulations, Mark Henry!


Big congratulations to Mark Henry for winning the World Heavyweight Title from Randy Orton at Night of Champions.  Mark Henry is a pure homegrown talent of the WWE who has never wrestled in any other promotion.  His claim to fame, which led him to the WWE was his weightlifting background.  In the 1992 and 1996 Olympics and the 1995 Pan Am games, he represented the United States in weightlifting.  After representing the United States in the 1996 Olympic Games, he signed a 10-Year contract. 

His first title run started when he won the defunct-WWE European Championship Title in 1999, but he never wrestled to win that title.  Jeff Jarrett awarded the title to him have Mark Henry helped Jarrett win the title over D’Lo Brown.  One month later, he lost to D-Lo Brown in at the Unforgiven PPV. 

From 1999 to 2008, Mark Henry was title-less.  Though he was involved in many storylines, he never was given the opportunity to hold a title until the 2008 Night of Champions.  On that night, he battled Kane and the Big Show in a Triple Threat Match to win the ECW Heavyweight Championship.  Two months later, he lost the title in a Championship Scramble Match.

Now, after 15 years with the WWE, he has finally become the World Heavyweight Champion.  Though professional wrestling is a scripted sporting event, there is still a great honor for a person who received a world heavyweight championship belt.  From the WWE to TNA to ROH to any independent wrestling promotion, the one who is at the top is their World Heavyweight Champion.  Out of all the hundreds of aspiring wrestlers from past to present, only a handful of wrestlers has been given the nod to win this championship belt.  There is only one time when a world heavyweight title was held by someone unworthy to hold it and that was David Arquette during the Monday Night Nitro (but that’s another story to talk about).  To hold this pristine title for any company is to say that the company believes that you are a hard-worker, dedicated to the craft, and ready to have the main storyline center around you.  Not many have the charisma and talent for that responsibility.  Not many have the attention of the fans to be given that responsibility.  So, when the WWE has decided to put Mark Henry in to the main event spotlight that was a great privilege entrusted to him and he is deserving of it.

How long will he hold the title?  No one knows.  He can drop it two weeks later at the next PPV or he can hold on to it until next year’s Wrestlemania, but the fact that he has held it is a great accomplishment to have.  Personally, Mark Henry has a one-dimensional character.  He is limited in his wrestling skill.  His mic skills aren’t the greatest.  He’s done silly gimmick, ridiculous promos, and jobbed to many wrestlers for them to get over.  Despite all this, he’s been a dedicated worker for the WWE.  Congratulations, Mark Henry!  You truly deserve it.

Where Did The Surprise Factor Go?


Night of Champions has come and gone.  It was a good pay per view.  The last match with Triple H and CM Punk had a lot of surprises like R-Truth and Miz running in and attacking Triple H, CM Punk, and the ref; John Laurinaitis running down with a new ref only to hold him back until CM Punk was on top of Triple H; and Kevin Nash runs in through the crowd to the ring and fighting both CM Punk and Triple H.  These were great moments and it left the audience with more questions than answers, but if people remember back to the Attitude Era, WCW/NWO Invasion, and the Monday Night Wars, these tactics were a staple to RAW and Nitro.  Every week, there was always some kind of surprise on each of these show, which made these shows awesome to watch.  Why did it change?  Why is it only on PPV that we get these “surprise factors”?

Reason 1 – There’s no more competition to WWE programming.  This isn’t a new assessment.  Many people attribute the blandness of WWE programming because there is no one alternative to their shows.  During the Monday Night Wars, WCW always pushed the envelope, which made the WWE step up in creating shock and awe in their shows.  Since there’s no challenging market to draw viewers away to alternatives, the WWE can show whatever they want and we as the audience just have to accept it.

Reason 2 – When everything is a surprise, then nothing is a surprise.  Even magicians, after using all the tricks up their sleeve, have a difficult time coming with new stunts.  If they do everything over and over again, then the audience will eventually be turned off.  To keep the audience off guard, certain big tricks are seldom used so that when they are used, it still excites people.  Same with WWE programming.  They have to pick-and-choose when to spring the surprise factor.

Reason 3 – Why give it away for free, when you can sell it?  The WWE is a business.  As a business, they have to save the big stunts for their pay-per-views.  This is another reason why major feuds are in a suspended animation until the pay-per-view.  So many skits promos are shown in order to hype feud.  The negative of all this is that the fans get tried of seeing the same hype-work show after show that sometimes, we get tired of waiting.  Now, when the feud culminates at the pay-per-view, we don’t care to it done over and over again.  This is why the surprise factor is launched at the pay per view so that we watch resolve of the conflict on Raw or Smackdown.

Reason 4 – Too pay per views to hype.  During the Monday Night Wars, the WWE had an average of 4 pay per views per year.  This allowed for a lot more run-ins and back-and-forth turns during Raw and Smackdown.  They constantly sprung the surprise factor throughout the episodes, which leads the feud to culminate at the pay per view.  Now with too many pay per views, Raw and Smackdown gets more watered down to mediocre storylines and we lose the surprise factor.

There is no 100% proven formula on what to keep ratings strong.  If there were, no TV shows would be cancelled, and the viewers would be watching the same thing over and over again.  As a wrestling fan, it would be great to be pleasantly surprised on Raw and Smackdown every week, but that’s not necessarily the case.  The Triple H and CM Punk match at Night of Champions showed that the WWE is aware of how to spring a new surprise on the audience.  Now, how to do it just enough to continue to grab more viewers is still the question.  Hopefully, there’s more intriguing storylines yet to come.  I’m eager to see where they go from here.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Claudio is now WWE's Antonio!

WWE Universe, this is the WWE newest recruit, Antonio Cesaro, who is known in the independent circuit as Claudio Castagnoli!  He is a 10 year veteran of the independent circuit and I am elated that he finally made it to the show.  It's standard operating procedure for the WWE to bring all new signees to their developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) for them to learn the WWE style of wrestling.  Though the essence of wrestling is 2 men in the ring going back and forth with one person victorious over the other, the WWE style deals more with story-telling than actual wrestling form.  It's the building of your character in front of an audience and portraying that character inside the ring.  This is the reason why the Heavyweight Champion can range from a Cruiserweight, quick, high flyer type of wrestler like Rey Mysterio to a large power Heavyweight who smash their opponents like Kane.  Though many independent promotions do the same thing, the WWE is the major leagues, so looking like an amateur is not an option.  From character portrayal to feuds to promos to in-ring work, the WWE Superstar has to be great at all of this in order for them to succeed.


At any rate, I am eager to see Claudio debut on WWE TV.  Claudio is Swedish by nationality which is in line with the push of having more international talents on the roster.  As it is right now, Wade Barrett is from England, Sheamus is from Ireland, Drew McIntyre is from Scotland, Santino Marella is from Italy, Alberto Del Rio is from Mexico, and Justin Gabriel is from South Africa.  Regardless of where there from, a good wrestler is a good wrestler, and Claudio is a good wrestler.  He has the height and built of a WWE wrestler and he has both a comedic side and heel side to him, but his biggest asset is really his charisma.  He's well-spoken, funny, and loves the camera.  His matches and antics on Youtube are so entertaining that you want to keep checking all the videos of him.  This is a unique characteristic.  There are many big, tall, and atheltic guys on the WWE roster but they aren't entertaining.  For example, hamming up in front of the camera is what makes Miz more entertaining than Morrison.  Though Morrison has better athletic skill than the Miz, I'd rather watch the Miz on TV than Morrison.  Because of that, I believe that Claudio will do well in the WWE.  It'll be a couple of months before they put him in front of a TV audience, so we'll have to wait to see how the WWE handles his character.

Though I've been talking about how he will be an entertaining wrestler, I also want to include that his European Uppercut is badd-ass.  Though wrestlers like Kurt Angle and Randy Orton use the European Uppercut in their matches, Claudio executes that move amazingly.  There's this extra rotation he does in the move that makes it look devastating on it's opponents.  I hope he keeps it when he shows up on TV.

There's a lot of independent wrestlers throughout the world.   Every one wants to be the next WWE Superstar.  I like that the WWE is taking chances on these wrestlers instead of trying to make home grown talents.  Hopefully, Chris Hero will get signed soon so that the WWE can have the Kings of Wrestling, and have them take the Tag Team division back to it's glory!

Saturday, September 17, 2011

The WWE Network: Session 6 – Alternative Programs


It still boggles my mind that all that the WWE will show on the WWE Network is WWE wrestling for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Yes, they have the library to fill the time.  Yes, they will have much flexibility in airing Raw and Smackdown, but there has to be more than just wrestling for the channel to survive.  Though I have no idea what the plans are for the WWE Network, I believe that they will still keep their contracts with the USA channel and Syfy channel.  Why?  Because they still garner strong ratings for those channels and with the ratings come the sponsors, and with the sponsors come the money.  But, what they can do is do a simultaneous airing along with those channels.  I don’t know if there are any legal ramifications if such happen, but it would make no sense to have a WWE channel and not air RAW and Smackdown at the same time when they air on the USA channel and Syfy channel.  Now, this blog isn’t about whether or not it will air on those channels.  I want to speculate possible alternative-but-WWE-oriented programs that the WWE can pursue.  My first speculation has to do with how they differentiate their airing of RAW and Smackdown from those channels.

Pre- and post- RAW and Smackdown Shows – Just like other professional sporting events, the WWE Network will have time to air pre- and post- RAW and Smackdown shows.  They can run the majority of the show from the WWE headquarters with back and forth live interviews with the talents and fans.  The pre-show can recap past events with the post-show recapping the show that aired.

Make NXT and Superstars it’s own brand – Because the WWE puts their best wrestlers on Raw and Smackdown, lower to mid card wrestlers have less and less opportunity to be on TV.  Giving them their own show would allow them to be on camera and develop their characters so that they will be ready to go when they are transferred to Raw or Smackdown.

Revive/Redevelop WWE Livewire/Byte This! – Shows like Livewire/Byte This! has an interesting concept of interacting with the fans.  This concept can be used along with a pre- and post- RAW and Smackdown show or it can be it’s own program.

Revive/Redevelop WWE Confidential – unlike the other shows that recap RAW or Smackdown, the WWE can revive/redevelop WWE Confidential in showing the behind-the-scenes of what wrestlers do to put on a show.  This can be modified as “24 Hours In The Life of ____” following a particular Superstar or Diva.  Also, this can have a regular 20 episode run per season.

Flashback show with Commentators – If you watched Scott Halls Youtube channel when he was still doing it, Scott Hall with either Larry Zbyscko or X-Pac would watch old wrestling matches and they would comment on it.  If WWE just shows old footage, that would be boring.  Now if any of there was 2 former WWE Superstars like Hall and X-Pac in a small box at the bottom of the screen talking about the match and comment on the wrestling time of that era, that would be very, very entertaining.

WWE fitness show – With Trish Stratus and Diamond Dallas Page still on good terms with the WWE and now that they have branched out to the Nutrition/Fitness market, having a fitness show would be inline with the theme of the WWE.

Comedy Skit Show – Whether you like him as a wrestler or not, Zack Ryder’s Youtube show is entertaining.  Give him a budget with a staff and camera crew, I believe that they can create a comedy skit show good enough for 20 episodes for a full season.  If not Zack Ryder, try Mick Foley.  If not Mick Foley, hire Colt Cabana as a TV show talent.  A comedy skit show would be funny and you can give more exposure to the WWE talents outside of the ring.

Diva Oriented Shows – The WWE Divas are hot.  They are great eye candy.  A Diva oriented show doesn’t necessarily have to be a bikini photo shoot show.  They can do a talk show interviewing not only wrestlers but celebrity fans.  They can do a fashion show where they visit designers and try on their clothes.  Anything with a hot WWE Diva in front of a camera will always grab someone’s attention.

Create a Boxing Promotion – There are a lot of hungry boxers out there just looking for exposure, and since no sporting promotion or sports entertainment company can compare to the promoting prowess of the WWE, it is a possible venture for the WWE Network.  Plus, unlike wrestling, a boxing promotion doesn’t need to tour the nation.  If they had one location for all their boxing shows, it would make it cost effective and I believe people will watch.  This can also happen if they pursued an MMA promotion to battle UFC.  These types of show might gain viewers who are not initially fans of wrestling.

Revive the XFL – Though this is highly unlikely to happen, the XFL did have viewers and it did sell tickets.  The downfall of the XFL is that it was NOT the NFL.  Though comparing the XFL to the NFL is like comparing TNA to WWE, there were still people that found the XFL entertaining. 

There are many possibilities for the WWE Network.  It will be interesting to see how this channel develops.  How much time will be about wrestling?  How do they expand their programming beyond wrestling?  What steps will they take to move from a wrestling oriented company to a multi-media company?  Only time will tell.

Friday, September 16, 2011

The WWE Network: Session 5 – The Advantages


Though I’ve been on the fence about how successful the WWE Network can be, I cannot deny the fact that there are many advantages for it.  Here are some of the advantages.

Being able to adjust their Shows – The best thing for the WWE of having their own network is that they have more control over when to air RAW, Smackdown, Superstar, and NXT.  Seasonal sports like football take away many viewers from RAW on Monday nights.  With Fox signing on the UFC to their network, many are saying that they will take the Friday night spot, which would take away any viewers if WWE does a Friday night show.  So, with their own network, the WWE has the freedom to not go head-to-head with any of these sports, allowing them to retain many of their viewers.

Showing longer wrestling matches – As it is right now, there is so much TV time that is used in recapping past events and promoting up-and-coming pay per views.  That time usage can be minimized with the WWE Network, because they can do recap and promo through out the day entire day on their channel.  With less time allotted for those time spots on Raw and Smackdown, more time can be given toward in-ring action.  This will also free up time for mid-carders and the women’s division to hone their skills in front of a camera.  Since many mid-carders and women never done the independent circuit, they lack lots of experience in the ring and in front of the camera.  Now that more time will be available, this will help them learn the WWE style of story-telling, which in the long-run, make them better performers.

More on-camera promos – On-camera promos date back as far as the conception of professional wrestling, but doing on-camera promos is easier said than done.  It’s in these promos that we get to see the personality of a wrestler.  I’m assuming that because air time is limited, the WWE also had to limit how much time is allotted to promos, so that there is time to promote any up-coming pay per view.  Now when they have their own network, they can create a pre-Raw show or pre-Smackdown show centered around promo work to enhance whatever the storylines are.  This will allow the fans to have a stronger connection with the wrestler and in turn, be more invested in the wrestling storyline.

Commercials for WWE films – As it is right now, the WWE are not that good in making films and neither is their promotion for these films.  The only time I will see a trailer or a commercial for a WWE film is when I watch a WWE program.  With the lack of promotion for their movies, the WWE Studios will take more losses than gains.  Since the WWE doesn’t invest in getting many commercial spots from various networks for their films, the WWE Network now allows them to air their trailer as often as they want.  Though this isn’t a big deal for the typical wrestling fan, this is a big deal for the WWE.

Creation of more jobs – From a wrestling point of view, this doesn’t mean much.  But for people in the entertainment industry or aspiring to be in the entertainment industry, this is a great thing.  Though the WWE has a huge library of wrestling footage which can start the new network, eventually, they will have to create new and original programming in order to catch more viewers attention.  In creating more shows, this will demand studio space, writers, camera-men, technicians, office workers, productions workers, and whatever else it takes to create shows.  In this day of our economy, the job opportunities are really scarce, but with the WWE Network, there will be a need for jobs to be filled.  Plus, for those WWE fans who would love to work for the WWE but not are not wrestlers, if they have the skills sets needed for the channel, this allows them to work for the greatest wrestling promotion of all time with out stepping in the ring.

These are just a few advantages for the WWE Network.  Only time will tell as to how successful it can be.  

Time To Move On


Rick Flair – born February 25, 1949 – age 62
Started Wrestling Career in 1972
First NWA World Heavyweight Championship in 1981

Hulk Hogan – born August 11, 1952 – age 58
Started Wrestling Career in 1977
First WWF Heavyweight Championship in 1984

Sting – born March 20, 1959 – age 52
Started Wrestling Career in 1985
First NWA World Heavyweight Championship in 1990

First Sting vs Flair feud – 1988
First Flair vs. Hogan feud – 1996 (from the NWO storyline)
First Hogan vs. Sting feud – 1996 (from the NWO storyline)

Looking at the statistics above, each wrestler won their first championship within 5-9 years of being in the business.  When a person wins the Heavyweight Championship title, the company trusts that he can be their spokesperson and grab the attention of the public in hyping up their events.  After each of the above wrestlers had their first title run, the popularity they generated made them one of the main talents for their company.  By 1996, when all 3 talents were signed to the WCW, their popularity was undeniably huge in the wrestling world.  By 2001 when WCW was sold to the WWE, they were 3 of the biggest names in wrestling history.  Roughly, within 15-20 years of their career, these 3 wrestlers have reached levels in the wrestling business that only few have ever reached.  Why?  Were they at the right place at the right time?  Were they just too unique and exceptional at what they do?  Were they the results of great promotion work from the company they were with?  The answer is Yes to all the above.  There is no one reason why they became popular.  The time came when someone chose to put them in the center of the company and they stayed with that decision and invested in their popularity.

How long can Impact Wrestling rely on these 3 wrestlers to promote their company?  It’s great that these 3 wrestlers have an active wrestling career until now, but to constantly give them main event angles then means less and less time for any up-and-coming talent.  The sad thing is that many of these Impact Wrestling up-and-coming talents have been in the business for over 10 years, but haven’t come close to the level of Hogan, Flair, and Sting  Here are some statistics:



Aside from AJ Styles who one the World Heavyweight Championship 3 times and Abyss who won it 1 time and Samoa Joe who won it 1 time, no other wrestler on this list had ever held the World Heavyweight title.  

Why haven’t any of these wrestlers been able to reach the heights of Hogan, Flair, and Sting?  Some say that Hogan, Flair, and Sting do not want to give up their main event status.  Others say that Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo don’t know how to promote wrestlers to the next level.  And others also say that Dixie Carter let’s everyone else run the company, which she owns.  Who is right?  I think they are all right to a degree.  Until Hogan, Flair, and Sting can just use their popularity to promote the company instead of their in-ring ability to help the company move forward, they will not grow.  Until Eric Bischoff and Vince Russo can move the other wrestlers into significant storylines, they will not grow.  Until Dixie Carter takes a stand and realize that they all work for her and if they can’t create something unique or original to gain fans and viewership and make money for the company, then they just have to part ways. 

Let me describe this way.  To have your own unique house, it’s easier to build a house from scratch according to your own specifications rather than buying an existing house and renovate it and be stuck with its parameters.  Impact Wrestling has been riding on the existing popularity of their talents like Hogan, Flair, and Sting. They’ve been riding on remnant WCW fan base who never liked WWE.  What they should do is create the next Hogan, the next Flair, and the next Sting.  They need to build a different look with a variety of characters to match-up against each other.  Until this happens, Impact Wrestling will never grow.

Overall, Impact Wrestling is not that bad.  It’s only bad when compared to WWE.  The in-ring wrestling is pretty good sometimes.  They do have good talent on their roster.  They have the ingredients to create a unique promotion that isn’t compared to the Old WCW and the current WWE.  But, as Hogan, Flair, and Sting continue to dominate a good part of their storylines, they will never escape the comparison.  They will never promote other wrestlers to be the next best thing. 

Personally, I hope that one day someone will decide that Hogan, Flair, and Sting’s time in the spotlight as in-ring competitors is finally over.  They do have name value, but I think it’s time for them to be PR representatives than active wrestlers.  I have great respect and admiration for those 3 competitors, but this isn’t the 80s/90s.  The WCW is done.  The Crow is an old movie and the next Batman movie won’t feature the Joker.  We have entered the next decade of this new century.  It’s time for Impact Wrestling to do the same thing.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Matt Hardy = WTH?!?!


The latest addition to the Matt Hardy Saga is that he was arrested AGAIN last Monday, September 12, 2011 for driving under the influence.  Matt Hardy tweeted that he was framed because he blew a 0.0 on the Breathalyzer.  According to the police report that leaked on-line, he nearly two cars three times.  When pulled over, he did blow a 0.0 on the Breathalyzer, but failed all the other sobriety field tests which led to his arrest.  His speech was slurred and his balance was off.  Further details can be found on-line.

My reaction to this story was, AGAIN?!?!?  Why does he still have a driver’s license?  If he has a record of driving under the influence, why isn’t his driver’s license suspended?  Since he didn’t have any alcohol on his breath, then the logical conclusion would be he was on drugs.  Now whether those drugs are prescription or non-prescription drugs has yet to be determined.  Blood was drawn at the Wake County Jail so we will have to wait for the blood report for the public to know.  The only person who knows what he took is Matt Hardy himself.  I don’t think that he even told his girlfriend Reby Sky, as to if he was taking drugs or not.  What amazes me is that a people know if there head is clear enough to drive or not, and to drive knowing that you are impaired is a blatant disregard to public safety. 

Personally, I think he’s going through a mid-life crisis as well as suffering from the effects of all the extreme stunts he’s done throughout his life.  He started wrestling when he was around 20 years old.  He started as a jobber in the WWE in 1994, to only build his reputation up and become a top performer for the WWE.  Fast-forward to 16 years later with traveling 4-6 days a week doing shows, beating his body up in the ring, and toward the end, getting less and less of a push, you can see how such a stressful life can lead a person to break down and not care about who they effect in their life.  I really don’t know the real reason why he’s like this.  Every thing I’m writing about is based on pure observation and speculation. 

It’s just sad to see someone like this hit rock bottom, and I can see why many wrestlers who have traveled the path he is in, turn to religion, which in turn, saves their life.  When you don’t have religion, you tend to seek your own gratification.  When you have religion, you look beyond your own gratification and seek to please a higher being.  The gist of this concept is looking beyond yourself.  This is what Matt Hardy seems to not be doing.  He’s still focusing on himself.  If he cares about others (girlfriend, brother, family, friends) more than himself, he will learn that can’t be irresponsible.  His irresponsibility hurts them, which is very sad thing for a person to do.

How do you fix this?  I don’t know.  Change of environment?  Counseling?  Rehab?  Maybe, but the old saying goes, you can take a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.  Hopefully, everything will workout for him.  Though I’m a fan of his work, I’m more concerned for his humanity.  To wrestle or not wrestle again is his choice, but to no care about himself, his family, and his friends is sad.  Hope you learn what you need to learn, Matt Hardy.  Life is too short to just piss it away.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

The WWE Network: Session 4 – The Obstacles


Many of us grew up watching TV.  We knew which day and time our favorite sit-com or drama was going to air, and we would adjust our schedule to watch it.  When cable television began to spread across the nation, we were offered a variety of shows, but regardless of the variety of shows cable offered, we still stuck to our favorite sit-com or drama.  When our favorite was over, we spent countless times channel surfing trying to find something worth watching.  Sometimes, we end-up finding nothing worth watching, and so the criticism of TV goes, “we have hundreds of channels, but nothing to watch.”  Will the WWE Network be one of those channels?

One obstacle I see with the WWE Network is that it seems to be 100% WWE programming.  Unless there is a change in WWE protocol, we shouldn’t expect to see Impact Wrestling or Ring Of Honor on the WWE Network.  The name alone says it all – WWE Network.  If it shows a movie, it will be a WWE Movie.  If it shows news, it will be WWE News.  If it shows wrestling, it will be WWE wrestling.  Why is this an obstacle?  Because wrestling fans are WRESTLING fans and not necessarily just WWE wrestling fans.  There is no obligation for the WWE to be a haven for wrestling programs, but there is an advantage of having other wrestling shows on the WWE Network.  There is a possibility of gaining those fans, if not to the WWE program, then at least to the WWE Network.  On the flipside, for those who are not fans of the WWE, then no matter how many programs you have, you will never convert them to the channel.

Another obstacle I see is Vince McMahon might be spreading himself too thin between the WWE Network, WWE Films, WWE Programming AND Linda McMahon’s possible 2012 Senate run.  WWE success has relied on Vince McMahon being an active player in whatever he is doing.  Actually, all successful leaders do that, but micromanaging people can prove detrimental to anyone’s success.  WWE Wrestling Programming is where all of Vince’s success started.  Until now, he is still in the middle of everything that’s done on the show.  WWE Films venture into the film industry can be a very profitable business, but they still haven’t yet found a winning formula in making movies.  So, close monitoring is still needed in order for it to be profitable.  With Linda McMahon’s possible 2012 Senate run, Vince will never let his wife do this entirely alone.  Now, we have the WWE Network.  Creating programs that will fit a 24-hour time slot is a daunting task.  Though the concept of the WWE Network has been discussed and planned in great detail prior to it’s official announcement to it’s stockholders, the execution will still require a lot of work.  Can Vince McMahon handle all this?  Possibly yes, but it’s not going to be easy, and something might suffer along the way.

Another obstacle to mention is the fact that single sports channel’s do not necessarily have strong ratings.  The Tennis channel only gets strong ratings when there is a major tennis tournament like Wimbledon.  The Golf channel only gets strong ratings during the PGA championships.  When there isn’t a current tournament or championship, the ratings aren’t necessarily stong.  If Raw and Smackdown move from their current networks to the WWE Network, there is a strong chance of a huge drop in ratings.  With low ratings, there is a potential loss in sponsorship.  Less sponsors mean less money.  That is the gamble that the WWE will be taking when starting the WWE Network.  Of course, this doesn’t mean that the WWE Network is doomed to fail, but this is obstacle that must be handled.

Though I’m on the fence when it comes to the WWE Network, I am really interested to see on how they approach this channel.  There is so much that is not yet revealed concerning this channel.  Pluse, 2012 is 12-months long, so we have yet to hear of an official air date and which cable companies will carry the channel.  All we can do is sit and wait and see what the WWE has in store for all of us.

Wrestling Website Spotlight – Showtime All-Star Wrestling


This week’s Wrestling Website Spotlight is Showtime All-Star Wrestling which can be found at www.sawonline.tv  Showtime All-Star Wrestling is a wrestling promotion that is based in Nashville, Tenessee.  They upload their shows weekly. Their video quality is decent and is tolerable to watch.  Currently, the SAW International Heavyweight Champion is Kid Kash who many will remember from ECW and WWE.  Kid Kash is also currently signed with Impact Wrestling for their X-Division.  So, if you want to expand you independent wrestling knowledge and see an alternative to WWE and TNA, check out www.sawonline.tv  Just click where it says SAWTV.  Note, you have to have a broadband connection for a smooth stream.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

The WWE Network: Session 3 – Too Much Wrestling

For tennis enthusiast, there is the Tennis Channel. For golf aficionados, there is the Golf Channel. For speed junkies, there is the SPEED Channel. Now, for all the wrestling fanatics, there will soon be The WWE Network. If you have read my first session on the WWE Network, I am on the fence regarding this channel, because I feel that we will eventually hit a point when we will have too much wrestling. The essence of a wrestling match is 2 people in a ring battling to pin the other down for a 3 count. Regardless of who is in the ring and how great their ring psychology is, the essence of wrestling is still the same. How much of that can we really watch? If that’s all they have in the morning, noon, and night, then eventually, I have no motivation to stay tune on the channel.  

One argument for a pure wrestling channel like the WWE Network is that there are existing channels that do feature a single sport like the Tennis Channel. One difference between these single sport channels and the soon-to-air WWE Network is that those other channels are separate from the entity that runs that sporting event that they feature. This dynamic allows for a variety of shows that relate to that channel’s theme. The Tennis Channel airs the various tournaments ran by the ATP and ITF. The Golf Channel airs various tournaments ran by the PGA, LPGA, and other golf organizations. The SPEED Channel airs various races ran by NASCAR, Formula 1 and other car-racing related programming. But what about the WWE Network? Apparently, the WWE Network will air only WWE Programming. WWE Programming is primarily centered on RAW and Smackdown. As a result, this channel can possibly be a 24 hour/7 day a week promotion for RAW and Smackdown. I already get annoyed that out of a 2-hour wrestling show, I’m only getting about 40 minutes of pure wrestling. So much time allotted to recapping last show, recapping a previous pay per view, and promoting an upcoming pay per view that I only get a handful of promo-to-wrestling matches. Now amplify that with everyday of the week, what variety do we really have? 

Another argument for the WWE Network is that we will be able to watch classic matches of the past. When we think about TV production, good wrestling TV shows really started around the mid-1980s. Prior to that, TV production value wasn’t necessarily that great. Those wrestling promotions that were able to video tape their matches had to do it on a low budget. As fun as it is to watch an old-school wrestling match, how tolerable is it to watch bad video production? Plus, many wrestling fans today are ignorant of past legends so what would motivate this current generation of wrestling fans to spend time watching the WWE Network? 

 As much as I am a wrestling fan, I don’t know if I can watch wrestling 24 hours/7 days. Nor do I think I can watch endless commercials of RAW and Smackdown and whatever upcoming pay per view that’s coming up. Unless there is a variety of shows that are interested and unique, then the only reason I will tune into the WWE Network is to watch RAW, Smackdown, and Superstars, and that’s it.

Wrestling Always Matters Podcast 9/13/11


Welcome to Wrestling Always Matters, your wrestling news podcast recapping and commenting on the wrestling news thats floating on the web.

In this podcast, we will hear news regarding... 
  • Survivor Series... 
  • Greg The Hammer Valentine's no show... 
  • Jeff Hardy's conviction... 
  • last week Smackdown's attendance... 
  • this week Smackdown's shows in Canada... 
  • Randy Orton... 
  • the next generation of Stampede Wrestling... 
  • Roddy Rowdy Piper's emergency surgery... 
  • Rosa Mendez and the FCW Divas... Gunner... 
  • and the Territory League!



Podcast Powered By Podbean
Thanks for listening. Feel free to leave a comment!

Monday, September 12, 2011

The WWE Network: Session 2 – The DVDs


As we have seen in my Session 1 article about how deep the WWE Library is, we cannot forget that the WWE also releases DVDs for their various events.  The advantage of having these DVDs is that the majority of editing is already done with minor tweaks being that any old WWF logo that appear must be blurred out.  Since 1985, WWE has been organizing PPV events, which many originally released on VHS.  Now that all have been transferred to DVD with some being transferred to Blu-Ray, their pool of shows for the WWE Network continues to grow.

The following is the list of WWE PPV Events on DVD.  In each year listed, the WWE came out with a DVD for that event.
Wrestling Mania (1985-2011)
Survivor Series (1987-1996, 2000-2010)
Royal Rumble (1988-2011)
SummerSlam (1988-2011)
Unforgiven: In Your House (1998)
Rock Bottom: In Your House (1998)
King of the Ring (2000-2002)
Backlash (2001-2009)
Judgmentment Day (2001-2009)
WWF Invasion (2001)
Unforgiven (2001-2008)
No Mercy (2001-2008)
Vengence (2001-2007)
No Way Out (2002-2009)
Armageddon (2002-2008)
Bad Blood (2003, 2004)
The Great American Bash (2004-2008)
Taboo Tuesday (2004, 2005)
New Year’s Revolution (2005-2007)
ECW: One Night Stand (2005, 2006)
One Night Stand (2007, 2008)
Cyber Sunday (2006-2008)
December to Dismember (2006)
Night of Champions (2008-2010)
Extreme Rules (2009-2011)
The Bash (2009)
Breaking Point (2009)
Hell In A Cell (2009, 2010)
Bragging Rights (2009, 2010)
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs (2009, 2010)
Elimination Chamber (2010, 2011)
Over The Limit (2010, 2011)
Fatal Four Way (2010)
Money In The Bank (2010, 2011)
Capitol Punishment (2011)

Aside from pay per view events, the WWE has released many Superstar documentaries such as the following:
Batista: I Walk Alone (3-Disc)
20 Years Too Soon: The "Superstar" Billy Graham Story
Bobby "the Brain" Heenan
Bret Hart – The Best There Is, Was & Ever Will Be
Brian Pillman: Loose Cannon
Brock Lesnar: Here Comes The Pain
Breaking The Code: Behind the Walls of Chris Jericho
Hard Knocks: The Chris Benoit Story
D-Generation X
The New & Improved DX
DX: One Last Stand
Divas: Desert Heat
Divas Do New York
Divas In Hedonism
Divas: South of The Border
Divas: Tropical Pleasure
Divas Undressed
American Dream: The Dusty Rhodes Story
Cheating Death, Stealing Life: The Eddie Guerrero Story
Hardy Boyz: Leap of Faith
Twist of Fate: The Matt & Jeff Hardy Story
Hulk Still Rules
Jake "The Snake" Roberts: Pick Your Poison
Jeff Hardy: My Life, My Rules
John Cena: My Life
John Cena: Word Life
The John Cena Experience
John Morrison: Rock Star
Lita: It Just Feels Right
3 Faces of Foley
Mick Foley: Hard Knocks & Cheap Pops
The Life and Times of Mr. Perfect
nWo – Back In Black
Rey Mysterio: 619
Rey Mysterio:The Biggest Little Man
Rey Mysterio: The Life of a Masked Man
Ric Flair: The Definitive Collection
Ric Flair and The 4 Horsemen
Road Warriors: The Life & Death of The Most Dominant Tag Team in Wrestling History
Roddy Piper: Born to Controversy
The Shawn Michaels Story: Heartbreak & Triumph
Austin 3:16 Uncensored
Steve Austin – Austin Vs. McMahon: The Whole True Story
'Cause Stone Cold Said So
Stone Cold Steve Austin – Hell Yeah!
The Stone Cold Truth
Steve Austin: What?
The Rock: Just Bring It
The Rock: Know Your Role
The Rock: The People's Champ
The Undertaker: The Phenom
The Undertaker: This Is My Yard
The Undertaker: 15-0
Triple H: The Game
Trish Stratus: 100% Stratusfaction Guaranteed
The Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior
McMahon
Eddie Guerrero Viva la Raza: The Legacy of Eddie Guerrero
Viva Las Divas

The WWE has also done DVD documentaries on the wrestling business such as the following:

Before They Were WWE Superstars
Before They Were WWE Superstars 2
Greatest Stars of The 80's (3-Disc)
Greatest Stars of The 90's (3-Disc)
Greatest Stars Of The 21st Century
Hardcore
History of WrestleMania
The Monday Night War
The Most Powerful Families In Wrestling
The Rise & Fall of ECW
The Rise & Fall of WCW
The Spectacular Legacy of the AWA
The Triumph & Tragedy of World Class Championship Wrestling
The True Story of WrestleMania
The World's Greatest Wrestling Managers
Top 50 Superstars of All Time

They also have done Superstar match compilation DVDs like Hulk Hogan: The Ultimate Anthology and Undertaker’s Deadliest Matches, as well as Special match compilations such as The Very Best of WCW Monday Nitro and Bloodsport: ECW’s Most Violent Matches.

From the start of the WWE Network, the WWE has more than enough content to start a channel but how long can old rehashed program carry the WWE Network?